Career and Education Opportunities for Prepress Technicians in West Valley City, Utah

For those living in the West Valley City, Utah area, there are many career and education opportunities for prepress technicians. Currently, 580 people work as prepress technicians in Utah. This is expected to grow by 13% to 660 people by 2016. This is better than the national trend for prepress technicians, which sees this job pool shrinking by about 17.7% over the next eight years. Prepress technicians generally set up and prepare material for printing presses.

Prepress technicians earn about $13 hourly or $28,900 per year on average in Utah and about $16 hourly or $35,030 yearly on average nationally. Prepress technicians earn more than people working in the category of Book Binding and Printing generally in Utah and more than people in the Book Binding and Printing category nationally.

There are thirty-three schools of higher education in the West Valley City area, including seven within twenty-five miles of West Valley City where you can get a degree to start your career as a prepress technician. The most common level of education for prepress technicians is a post-secondary certificate. You can expect to spend a short time studying to be a prepress technician if you already have a high school diploma.

CAREER DESCRIPTION: Prepress Technician

Prepress Technician video from the State of New Jersey Dept. of Labor and Workforce Development

In general, prepress technicians set up and prepare material for printing presses.

Every day, prepress technicians are expected to be able to see details at a very fine level of focus. It is also important that they evaluate problems as they arise.

It is important for prepress technicians to enter and alter text size, using computers, to make up and arrange pages so that printed materials can be produced. They are often called upon to maintain and clean equipment, and perform minor repairs. They also enter and retrieve data on computer-aided equipment. They are sometimes expected to examine photographic images for obvious imperfections before plate making. Somewhat less frequently, prepress technicians are also expected to enter and alter text size, using computers, to make up and arrange pages so that printed materials can be produced.

Prepress technicians sometimes are asked to inspect developed film for specified results and quality, using magnifying glasses and scopes; forward acceptable negatives or positives to other staff or to customers. They also have to be able to mix solutions such as developing solutions and colored coating solutions and reposition lamps and adjust aperture controls in order to furnish high quality images. And finally, they sometimes have to examine unexposed photographic plates to uncover flaws or foreign particles before printing.

Like many other jobs, prepress technicians must be thorough and dependable and be reliable.

Similar jobs with educational opportunities in West Valley City include:

Baker. Mix and bake ingredients according to recipes to produce breads, rolls, or other baked goods.

Solderer. Braze or solder together components to assemble fabricated metal parts, using soldering iron, torch, or welding machine and flux.

EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES: Prepress Technician Training

The Art Institute of Salt Lake City - Draper, UT

The Art Institute of Salt Lake City, 121 W Election Rd - Ste 100, Draper, UT 84020. The Art Institute of Salt Lake City is a small school located in Draper, Utah. It is a private for-profit school with primarily 4-year or above programs. It has 106 students and an admission rate of 39%. The Art Institute of Salt Lake City has a bachelor's degree program in Graphic Design.

Stevens-Henager College - Murray, UT

Stevens-Henager College, 383 W Vine St, Murray, UT 84123-5671. Stevens-Henager College is a small college located in Murray, Utah. It is a private for-profit school with primarily 4-year or above programs and has 823 students. Stevens-Henager College has an associate's degree program in Graphic Design which graduated seven students in 2008.

University of Utah - Salt Lake City, UT

University of Utah, 201 Presidents Circle, Salt Lake City, UT 84112-9008. University of Utah is a large university located in Salt Lake City, Utah. It is a public school with primarily 4-year or above programs. It has 28,211 students and an admission rate of 81%. University of Utah has a postbaccalaureate certificate and a post-master's certificate program in Graphic Design which graduated fourteen and zero students respectively in 2008.

ITT Technical Institute-Murray - Murray, UT

ITT Technical Institute-Murray, 920 W Levoy Dr, Murray, UT 84123. ITT Technical Institute-Murray is a small school located in Murray, Utah. It is a private for-profit school with primarily 4-year or above programs. It has 741 students and an admission rate of 49%. ITT Technical Institute-Murray has a bachelor's degree program in Graphic Design.

Brigham Young University - Provo, UT

Brigham Young University, Main Campus, Provo, UT 84602. Brigham Young University is a large university located in Provo, Utah. It is a private not-for-profit school with primarily 4-year or above programs. It has 34,227 students and an admission rate of 69%. Brigham Young University has a bachelor's degree program in Graphic Design which graduated ten students in 2008.

Salt Lake Community College - Salt Lake City, UT

Salt Lake Community College, 4600 S Redwood Rd, Salt Lake City, UT 84123. Salt Lake Community College is a large college located in Salt Lake City, Utah. It is a public school with primarily 2-year programs and has 29,539 students. Salt Lake Community College has a one to two year program in Prepress/Desktop Publishing and Digital Imaging Design which graduated two students in 2008.

Eagle Gate College - Murray, UT

Eagle Gate College, 5588 South Green Street, Murray, UT 84123-6965. Eagle Gate College is a small college located in Murray, Utah. It is a private for-profit school with primarily 4-year or above programs and has 349 students. Eagle Gate College has an associate's degree program in Graphic Design which graduated nineteen students in 2008.

LOCATION INFORMATION: West Valley City, Utah

West Valley City, Utah photo by Joe Tordiff

West Valley City is situated in Salt Lake County, Utah. It has a population of over 123,447, which has grown by 13.4% in the past ten years. The cost of living index in West Valley City, 87, is well below the national average. New single-family homes in West Valley City are valued at $108,600 on average, which is far less than the state average. In 2008, ninety-eight new homes were constructed in West Valley City, down from two hundred thirty-five the previous year.

The three most popular industries for women in West Valley City are finance and insurance, health care, and educational services. For men, it is construction, accommodation and food services, and administrative and support and waste management services. The average travel time to work is about 23 minutes. More than 11.4% of West Valley City residents have a bachelor's degree, which is lower than the state average. The percentage of residents with a graduate degree, 2.8%, is lower than the state average.

The unemployment rate in West Valley City is 8.3%, which is greater than Utah's average of 6.3%.

The percentage of West Valley City residents that are affiliated with a religious congregation, 67.5%, is more than the national average but less than the state average. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, Atonement Lutheran Church and Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Church are some of the churches located in West Valley City. The most common religious groups are the LDS (Mormon) Church, the Catholic Church and the Southern Baptist Convention.

West Valley City is home to the Valley Indoor Market Place and the Mini Warehouse Condominium. Shopping malls in the area include Redwood Shopping Center, Valley Fair Mall and Granger Shopping Center.